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How much is parking at Disney World?
Guests staying at the Walt Disney World Resort hotels receive free overnight self-parking. So if you are staying at any of the Walt Disney World hotels, you get complimentary parking. For guests staying at Disney's Fort Wilderness, each campsite provides one parking space.
Parking at any of the theme parks starts at $25 for standard parking. Guests only need to pay this fee once per day and you will be good to go to park at any of the theme parks. Preferred parking is $45-50 per day and gives guests access to parking lots that are located close to the entrance of the theme parks. Oversized vehicles (shuttle, limo, camper, etc.) will pay $30 per day.
Guests staying at any of the Disney resort hotels will also receive free parking at the theme parks. If you want to use preferred parking, you will just pay the cost difference which would usually come to about $20 per day. Some select annual passholders also receive free theme park parking if it's included in the type of annual pass they have.
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Disney Parking Trams
There are parking trams at the Walt Disney World theme parks that you can use to get closer to the entrance of the theme park rather than walking. You will want to take advantage of these trams especially when its hot outside and you're tired from a day of walking.
Can you get free parking at Disney World?
Guests staying at any of the Walt Disney World hotels will receive free overnight parking at their resort during their story.
Disney Vacation Club members will not be charged for overnight parking when staying at Deluxe Villas or Disney Resort Hotels. This parking is free whether they use Vacation Points or pay out of pocket for the stay.
Valet Parking
Valet parking is available at the Disney Deluxe and Disney Deluxe Villa Resorts along with Disney's Coronado Springs Resort.
Valet parking at Walt Disney World costs $33 per night.
Guests with Disabilities
Guests with disabilities can find designated parking areas around all Walt Disney World. Guests will need a valid parking permit to park in these spaces.
Disney Car Locator
The Walt Disney World parking lots are huge! It is easier than you think to lose your car in the vast parking lot so always make sure to note the row you are parked in. The easiest way to do this is to use location services inside the My Disney Experience app to save your parking details with the Car Locator feature.
Electric Vehicle Charging Stations
There is a large number of EVC charging stations located all around the Walt Disney World Resort. These are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
- Magic Kingdom park: 5 spaces—one space at the front of the Medical Parking Lot and 4 spaces at the front of the Zurg Parking Lot
- EPCOT: 4 spaces at the front of the Journey Parking Lot
- Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park: 4 spaces in the Medical Parking Lot
- Disney's Hollywood Studios: 4 spaces at the front of the Mickey Parking Lot
- Disney Springs: 13 spaces—3 on the 5th floor of the Orange Garage, 3 on the 5th floor of the Lime Garage, 3 on the 3rd floor of the Grapefruit Garage and 4 in the Watermelon Lot near the Cirque du Soleil theater
- Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort: 6 spaces in general parking near ADA spaces
- Disney's Riviera Resort: 4 spaces in general parking near ADA spaces
- Disney’s Wilderness Lodge: 2 spaces in general parking near ADA spaces
In order to use the ECV sharing stations, guests need to use a credit card or ChargePoint card. The cost is $0.35 per kilowatt hour, with a minimum service amount of $1.50. Charging will stop once the vehicle’s battery is fully charged. ChargePoint will “ping” the owners to alert them when their car is ready.
Disney Springs Parking
All standard self-parking is free when you are going to Disney Springs. There are surface parking lots and three parking garages with direct access to Disney Springs.
The parking garages are the most popular for obvious reasons- they are shaded and not out in the hot Florida sun. Because of this they are also the most popular and tend to fill up quickly. They also tend to be closer to Disney Springs than a lot of the surface parking lots are. The parking garages also have a standard sensor system that will tell you how many spaces are available. Because of all these reasons, I highly suggest using the parking garages when you come to Disney Springs.
Disney World Water Park Parking
All the guests get free parking at the water parks in Walt Disney World- Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon. Most of the parking lots for the waterparks are located within walking distance from the park entrance.
Parking at ESPN Wide World of Sports
All the parking is free at the ESPN Wide World of Sports.
Can I buy Disney World parking ahead of time?
No, you have to wait until you arrive to pay for parking.
Walt Disney World Gas Stations
The most convenient gas stations in Walt Disney World include:
- Magic Kingdom Speedway (close to the Transportation and Ticket Center)
- Epcot Resorts Speedway (Epcot Resorts Blvd)
- Disney Springs Speedway (Disney Springs)
Do You Need a Car at Walt Disney World?
No, you do not need a car at Walt Disney World. There is such a robust transportation system that runs to match the theme park hours that you can easily go without a car. In fact, most guests that are staying at the resort hotels usually utilize the Disney transportation since it is so convenient.
Pros of Having a Car at Disney World
Some of the benefits of having a car at Walt Disney World is the convenience. If you want to get to your destination quickly, having your own car is going to be the quickest way to get there even if the Disney transportation is efficient.
It is also cheaper than using rideshare which can add up quickly at Disney World especially as prices can go up during busier times of the day.
And since parking at the resort hotels and theme parks is free for hotel guests, if you have easy access to your car it's a no brainer to have it with you. This is helpful for guests that drove to the resort whether they are local or drove to Walt Disney World as a road trip.
If you plan on leaving Walt Disney World to go to other areas in Orlando, having your own car can be a nice benefit so you can avoid having to use ride-share or other transportation options.
We travel to Walt Disney World often and I have never rented a car though. It is very easy to get around the resort using Disney transportation and we utilize rideshare like Uber/Lyft to get to other destinations in Orlando like Universal Orlando.
Parking at Walt Disney World is much easier than many people expect especially now that FREE parking has returned.
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